Centrifugal clothes drier



May 12, 1931. v H. F. vlEAU 1,805,428

CENTRIFUGAL CLOTHES DRIER Filed June 11, 1927 2 sheets-Sham l IN VEN TOR.

Hav'od I.' Vrjeau,

.-4 TTORVE l May 12, 1931. H. F. vlEAu CENTRIFUGAL CLOTHES DRIER Vmed June 11, 1927 2 sheets-sheet N V EN TOR.

HaroZLZ/ View 2f v Z0 Patented Mayv 12, 193i y ,UNITED STATES;

PATENTJoFFIcr-L HAROLD IF. V'IIllAl'J', LIVERPOOL, NEW,YOBK,`ASSIGNOR OF ONE-THIRD TO BOY C. HIG'IBY, OF BIG MOOSE, NEW-YORK, ANI) ONEfTHIRD TO EDWARD ONEILL, OF

SYRACU'SE, NEW YORK CEN''JI'RIIFU'GAI.'A CLOTHES DBIEB Application le-d'June 11, 1927. Serial No. 185,273.

This invention relates toa centrifugal apparatus designed primarily for the drying of Yclothes, but further capable for carrying out a rinsing operation with respect to the clothes when desired, and the invention has 'for its object to provide, in a manner-as hereinafter set forth, an apparatus of the class referred to for expeditiously and satisfactorily drying clothes, as well as for automatically carlv rying olf theY extracted water simultaneously with the clothes drying operation, vor when theclothes are subjected to rinsing.

A further and lprimary object of this invention is to provide, in a centrifugal apis paratus, an` overiow collecting and directing element for association with a centrifugal extracting receptacle to receive the overflow from the latter, and which is so constructed and arranged that the same maybe manually adjusted to any position'about the top of vthereceptacle so asl to convey and direct the water or -other fluidv overflowing from the receptacle thereinto, to any one of a plurality of points, for example, into a Washing l5 tub, a bluing tub, or simply as waste water to any other receptacle or to a sink, or the like.

A further object of the invention is to prov vide, in a manner as hereinafter set forth,

1"* an apparatus of the class referred to with means for thoroughly Yrinsing a .batch of clothes when desired, and with the rinsing water supplied from the bottom or top of said means and conducted therefrom dur- 1 ingr the rinsing operation.

lVhile this device is illustrated as showing v a mechanism for conducting rinsing water into the chamber through the bottom thereof, it should be understood that this feature is no part of the invention herein claimed, and that the adaptability of thev receptacle as a rinsing receptacle is incidental to its primary purpose as a centrifugal drying apparatus. Further, that said receptacle is t 4,5 equally and as efficiently usable as a rinsing receptacle without the water inlet mechanism, since that part of the device may be entirely eliminated and the rinsing Water put into said receptacle by means of a bucket, hose, or the like, through the'open top of the receptacle. u A

With the foregoing and other objects in view, the invention consists of the novel construction, combination and .arran ement of parts 'as hereinafter more speci cally described and illustrated in the accompanying Figure 3 is a fragmentary sectional view of the upper portion of the, centrifugal receptacle and adjustablel overiow collecting and directing'element associated therewith, taken on line 3-8 Figure 2.

Figure 4 is an enlarged fragmental detail centrifugal receptacle of the apparatus, but' it' is to be understood that the overflow ca n be directed to any` other circumferential point vView of one corner of the top of the cendesired. As before stated the apparatus is designed primarily as a clothes drier, but

can be, when desired, employed as a rinser.

There is illustrated a support, preferably .a mobile one, for the elements of the apparawashing tub or the drying apparatus. There foraminous basket 10 correspondin in shape, but of less depth than sald recep is also carried by the support any suitable mechanism driven from the motor for translmitting a rotary movement to the drying mechanism, as well as any conventional type of control means which may lbe connected thereto for regulating said motor and said mechanism. The specific type of motor and power transmis-sion mechanism shown and described more in detail hereinafter forms no, art of this invention.

receptacle 9, open at its upper end and referably of inverted frusto-conical contour 1s rotatably mounted upon said platform and within said carriage as hereinafter described. Adapted to fit within the receptacle 9 is a thereto tacle. The receptacle 9-is formed at it-s top with an outward extension 11, which terminates in a depending flange 12 spaced from the body of the receptacle. The upper face of the extension 9 is transversel corrugated or grooved, as at 13, thus provi ing exits for the passage of overflow water or the like from the receptacle 9. The rotation of the receptacle 9, causes a centrifugal action which has the effect of extracting from a batch of clothes within the receptacle 9, any water or moisture in the clothes and discharging such water through the exitsl aforesaid. The arrows, Figure 4, indicate the direction of travel of the extracted Huid upward along the inner wall of the receptacle to and through the exits to a manually adjustable overflow collecting and directing element to be presently described.

The receptacle 9 may be used with or without the basket 10.' Said-basket is formed with an enlarged reinforced upper rim circular in cross-section,l as indicated at 14. This enlarged rim actsjtov space the basket from the innerwall of v the receptacle. Said basket forms no part of the invention claimed herein. i Surrounding and extending above the upper portion of the receptacle9 is a substantially vertical frame 15 and so formed at one portion of the periphery thereof that it may readily he secured to the washing tub 7 or other support. The iner wall of said frame is provided with a groove indicated at 16, while the upper edge of said frame acts as a trackfor the manually adjustable co1- lecting and directing element.

The manually adjustable overow collecting and directing element is in the form of a combined trough member and drain board and is generally designated as 17, is mounted above said frame l5, but is formed with an annular depending llangc 18, said flange being adapted to seat snugly within said frame 1 5, and having in its outer peripheral wall a groove 19 adapted, when in position, to register with the groove 16, thus forming a race for the ball bearings 20.

The trough member is annular in form, having a bottom 21, an upwardly extending outer wall 22 integral therewith, an inwardly extending flange 23 integral with the top of said outer wall, and an upwardly extending inner wall 24: integral with the bottom 21. Said outer wall 22 is relatiyely higher with respect to the bottom 21 than is the inner wall 24. The outer wall 22 is cut away for a portion of its circumference as at 25, to provide an outlet for the trough member whereby the discharge. from said trou h member may be directed by a drain boar 26 to any circumferential point desired. The drain board 26 is formed integral with the bottom 21 and outer wall 22, having upstanding side pieces 27 integral with the wall 22 at the ends of the cutout portion 25.

When the receptacle 9 is set up in operative position with respect to the trough member, the depending flange 12 ofthe receptacle hooks over the inner wall 24 of the trough member, so that the extension 11 maintains a position in superposed spaced relation to the upper edge of the inner wall 24, while the depending flange 12 extends int-o the trough member. The trough member is circumferentially adjustable relative to the frame 15, so that the drain board 26 formed integral therewith may be manually adjusted to any selectedv circumferential point desired. When so adjusted the water or other fluid extracted by the centrifugal action of the receptable 9 may be directed into the tub 7 or to any other vessel positioned at any point about the drying apparatus.

A cover 28, isadapted to seat upon the receptacle 9, the same being formed with reinforcing webs 29 on its upper face. The marginal portion of the cover member 28 is upset asI at 30 to provide what may be 'termed an annular lip for seating on the top of the extension 11 of the receptacle 9. Said lip is so shaped with respect to the remaining portion of t e cover as not to close the exits formed by the corrugations or grooves 13, as clearly illustiated in Figure 4 of the drawings.

The cover 28 is provided centrally of its outer face with a socket 31. The inner wall vof the socket is`formed with an offset or seat portion 32.*. An, annular ring 33 is adapted to e inserted in said socket and rest upon the seat 32 therein. Said ring is formed on its inner wall'with a circumferential groove 34. T he ring 33 is held within the socket by mea-ns of an apertured circular plate 35 preferably. in sections, said plate being seated on the upper edge of the wall of the socket 31 and overlying the top edge of the ring 33. Hold-fast elements 36 are then secured through the wall of the socket to the plate 35 to hold the same in xed position. A lid, hereinafter described in detail, is adapted to cooperate with the cover 28. Said lid is provided with a stu-b shaft 37 mounted centrally thereof, sol positioned that the inner end thereof will register with the l socket 31 formed in the cover 28. The inner end of said shaft is reduced and screw threaded. Mounted on the shaft 37 above the inner end thereof is a ring 38 formed with an annular groove 39 in the outer wall thereof. Said 'ring 38 is held upon said shaft by means of a lock nut 40. When in operative position, the inner wall of the ring 33 is opposed to the outer wall of the ring 38 so that the grooves 34 and 39 will register to form a race for the ball bearings 41. This then permits the cover 28 to rotate freely with respect to the lid 42 upon which it is mounted.

The lid 42, previously referred to, is formed laterally thereof with one section of a conventional hinge member, preferably having a pair of angularly disposed lugs 43 extending downwardly to be hingedly secured to the other section 44 of said hinged member, the latter being mounted to the frame l5.

As will be seen, whenk the lid 42 is closed, it seats upon the top edge of the trough inember, thus v,bringing -the cover 28 down upon and into engagement with the top. of the receptacle 9, forming a closure for said receptacle. Although the lid 42 is secured in fixed position upon the trough ashereinafter described, yet the cover 28 is at the same time permitted to rotate freely upon the. rotation of the receptacle 9. d

A conventional latching means ris employed for maintaining' the lid 42'in closed positionA and such' means may consist of a vpair of laterally projecting lugs 45 carried by the lid 42 diametrically oppositthe hinge therefor.f` The lugs 45 aregrooved in the' tops thereof transversely, to provide seats. Directly be, low the lugs '45 and secured to the frame 154 is a locking member comprising affixed 'lug 46 having a cam face on the underside thereof as indicated at 47. Said lug is formed with av vertical opening therethrough adapted to receive a bolt 48 loosely mounted therein, said bolt being formed with a transverse head 49 on the upper end thereof and a nut 50 on the lower end thereof. Said head 49 is provided with a horizontal opening therethrough adapted to receive a shackle 51 so that said .shackle will be. swingingly pivoted to said 'hea-d. Upon the said bolt 48 and beneath said lug 46 is loosely mounted a latch 52 having a cam face 53 upon the upper side thereof to cooperate with the opposed cam face 47 ofthe lug 46, said latch being formed with aI handle 54.

From the foregoing, it will be seen that when the lid 42 is closed, and the handle of the locking member is thrown to release position, the shackle 51 may be swung up and over and into the engagement with the lugs 45, and `that thereupon, by swinging the handle of the latch member so as zo bring the cam faces into binding engagement, the bolt and shackle secured thereto will be forced Vhileany power mechanism and control -meaus therefor may be employed to rotate the receptacle 9 for the purpose of imparting a centrifugal action to whatever may be contained therein, still I have illustrated and will now describe the preferred mechanism for this purpose. y

A clutch mechanism is provided which has va dual function, one of which is to form the "ceptacle 9 and adapted to pass downwardly through said collar 55 is a rotatable shaft 56. Interposed between the inner wall of the collar 55 and the shaft 56 adjacent the upper vend thereof, is mounted a ball bearing member 57 to permitl free rotation of the shaft and receptacle secured thereto with relation to said collar and the platform 5. Beneath the collar and keyed to the shaft is a clutch member formed with a central sleeve 58, having at its upperend an outwardly and upwardly extending brake shoe 59 beveled upwardly andoutwardly upon the inner periphery. thereof and'v adapted to engage with the outer beveled surface of the collar 55. Said sleeve "58 is'also formed at its'lower end with an outwardly and downwardly extending clutch shoe ,G0-b ev eled downwardly` and inwardly on itsv outer periphery-and adapted to coact with a beveledv gear 6l loosely mounted upon said shaft 56 for the purpose of driving the latter. The gear 61 is provided with an upwardly extending circumferential flange62 beveled on its inner periphery upwardly and outwardly for engagement with the outer beveled face of the lower clutch shoe 6l of the sleeve 58. A vertically disposed beveled gear 63 is fixed to a shaft 64 operatively connected with the motor 8 and adapted to mesh with the gear 61. Interposed between the top of the sleeve 58 and the bottom of the ball bearingvmember 57 is an expan- 10 sion spring 65 adapted to normally hold the clutch member in engagement with the gear 61. A circumferential flange 66 depends from the platform 5 spaced apart from the collar 55 and to which is secured by suitable means a housing 66 which encloses the aforesaid gearing and clutch member, said housing being adapted to retain oil for the constant lubrication and easy operation of the parts. The shaft 56 is hollow and within said shaft isfmounted a water inlet pipe 67 having a beveled valve seat 68 at'the upper end thereof adapted to retain a ball valve 69 to prevent the discharge of water from the receptacle through the inlet pipe, but at the 5 same time permitting the inlet of water from the pipe to the receptacle. A water pipe, not shown, is connected at one end to theinlet pipe 67 at 67 and at its other end to a source of water supply. A convex perforated plate 7 Ois secured to the bottom of the receptacle 9 adapted to limit the upward movement of -t-he ball valve, permit the ingress of water to the receptacle, and prevent. the egress ofany solid substance that might otherwise clog the 35. valve.

The shifting means for the clutching member may be of any conventional type, but I have illustrated and will describe a preferred form of such mea-ns and it comprises a rock 0 shaft. 71 extending through the housing 66',

the clutch shoe of the sleeve 58 is disenguged from the flange 62 of the gear 61, thus disconnecting the clutch member, entirely 55 from the motor. A pull rod 7 3 is secured to a. crank 74 carried by one end ofthe shaft 71 exteriorly of the housing 66. The rod 73 extends upwardly and is connected to a pivotally supported counterbalanced handle o member 75 therefor.

lthat I claim is: d

1. In an apparatus for the purpose set forth a vertically disposed revoluble receptacle forming a combined rinsing and drying chamber, an adjustable drain board, means carried at the top of the receptacle to permit of adjustably positioning said board circumferentially with respect to the receptacle for directing the overflow from said chamber to the point desired.

2. An apparatus for the purpose set forth comprising a washing chamber, a. combined rinsing and drying chamber, `and a revoluble support carried at the top of the combined rinsing .andl drying chamber and provided with a drain board capable of being shifted by the support to extend over the washing chamber for directing the overflow from the combined rinsing and drying chamber into the washing chamber. l

3. In an apparatus for the purpose set forth, a vertically disposed revoluble extracting receptacle flanged outwardly at its upper end to provide a bearing surface for a lid, a separable driving connection for the lower end of said receptacle, a troughed member having an open upper end surroupding the upper end of said' receptacle andv manually adjustable about the axis for directing water expelled thereinto lfrom said receptacle to the pointdesired, a drain board connected to and adjustable with said troughed member, a supportingl means for said troughed member, a cover or the open upper end of said trough member, and a lid revolubly connected with saidcover and adapted when said cover is in closed position to assumeI a closed position sho with respect to said receptacle and have an engaging relation with the flanged end thereof, said lid and flanged portion of said receptacle being so related to each other as to provide Water egress passage therebetween.

4. In an apparatus for the purpose set forth,A an extractor comprising a container unobstructed interiorly thereof, operating means connected with said container, and a water conducting element adj acent; the upper part of said container and circumferentially adjustable about the same to receive and direct water expelled from said container to one of a selected point of discharge.

5. In an apparatus for the purpose set forth, a centrifugal extractor' comprising a rotatable receptacle, a cover for the receptacle, circmferentially adiustable mea-ns for the discharge of overfiow water at the top of vthe receptacle, said means permitting of the discharge of the liquid' selectively at one or another of a plurality of points spaced circumferentially about the receptacle, and means independent of said receptacle for supporting said cover for rotation with the receptacle. v

6, In an apparatus for the purpose set forth, a rotatable extracting receptacle, an

element supported to'be manually and circumferentially adjusted about said receptacle and toreceiveand conduct water therefrom.

adjustable with said element.

forth, a rotatable extracting receptacle, a

housing supported to be manually and circumferentially adjusted about the upper end of said receptacle and to receive and conduct water therefrom, a drain board connected to and adjustable with said housing, a cover'for said housing, and a lid rotatably connected with said cover and adapted when said cover isin closed` position to serve as aclosure for and to rotate with said receptacle.

8. In an apparatus for the purpose set forth, a rotatable extracting rece tacle, a housing supported to be manually and circumferentially adjusted about the upper end of said receptacle and to receive and conducty water therefrom, a drain board connected to and adjustable with said housing, a cover for said housing, and a lid rotatably connected with said cover and adapted when said cover is in closed position to serve as a closure for and to rotate with said receptacle, the latter and the lid being related to each other to provide water egress passages therebetween.

`9. In an apparatus for the purpose set `forth, a rotatable extracting receptacle, a

seperable driving connectionfor the base of said receptacle, a drain board supported to be manually and circumferentially adjusted about the upper end of said receptacle, whereby said drain board may be brought into re` lation with differently placed receptacles, and means to conduct water expelled from said receptacle to said drain board when in its different adj usted positions.

10. In an apparatus for the purpose set forth, a rotatable extracting receptacle, a drain board supported to be manually and circumferentially adjusted about the upper end of said receptacle, whereby said drain board may be brought into relation with differently placed receptacles, means to conduct water expelled from said receptacle to said drain board when in its different positions, and` means for supplying water to said receptac e.

11, In an apparatus for the purpose set forth, a vertically disposed revoluble receptacle forming a combined rinsing and drying chamber,4 a drain-board-supporting member surrounding the upper end of the receptacle and adjustable about the axis thereof for directing the overflow from said chamber to the point desired, and means for supporting said member.

12. In a centrifugal clothes drier, a receptacle for the clothes revoluble about a vertical axis, and provided at its upper end with an overflow passage, and a conduit encircling the upper end of the receptacle for receiving the overflow, said conduit having an outlet and being adjustable aboutsaid axis for directing the outlet to different points.

13. In a centrifugal clothes drier, a receptacle for the clothes revoluble about a vertical axis andprovided at its upper end with an overflow passage, and means extending laterally from the upper end of the receptacle to receive overflow from said passage and adjustable about the axis of the receptacle to direct said overow to different points. h In testimony whereof, I aix my signature ereto.

HAROLD F. VIEAU. 

